Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs are the dinner gods’ gift to home cooks everywhere. Each one is its own perfect portion of crispy skin and juicy meat that’s pretty impossible to overcook. Just make sure you cook them thoroughly on the skin side first to render out as much of the fat as possible and ensure maximum crispiness.

Steps

Pat 6 chicken thighs dry with paper towels and season all over with salt. Rub only skin side of thighs with 1 Tbsp. oil.

Transfer thighs skin side down to skillet and cook until enough fat is rendered to cover bottom of skillet, about 5 minutes. Once skin starts to brown, increase heat to medium. Rotate skillet to encourage even browning. Carefully lift up thighs to allow hot fat to run underneath. If thighs are stubborn and don’t want to release, let them go a bit longer.

While thighs are cooking, cut 1 lb. carrots into 4" segments.

Cook thighs until meat is opaque all around the edges and skin is deep golden brown, 10–12 minutes total. Transfer skin side up to a plate.

Pour off all but about 2 Tbsp. fat from skillet (you just want enough left to form a thin layer) and heat over medium-high. Add carrots and try to arrange so all are side by side in a single layer in direct contact with skillet. Cook, undisturbed, until lightly charred on first side, about 5 minutes. Turn carrots so charred side is facing up, then season lightly with salt.

Cook carrots on opposite side until lightly charred, about 2 minutes. Turn off stove and transfer skillet to oven. Roast until a toothpick, skewer, or cake tester easily pierces surface of carrot but encounters resistance in the center, 8–10 minutes.

Carefully remove skillet from oven (the handle will be hot!) and place on stove. Arrange thighs over carrots and drizzle sauce over. Return to oven and roast until chicken thighs are cooked through (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part near the bone will register 165°), juices run clear, sauce is caramelized on chicken skin, and carrots are tender all the way through, 12–18 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest 10 minutes.

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While skillet is resting, thinly slice 3 scallions.

Transfer chicken and carrots to a platter and drizzle pan juices over. Top with scallions and sesame seeds.

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Recipe by Claire Saffitz

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One-Skillet Roasted Sesame Chicken Thighs with Carrots

Reviews Section

Reviews

I went to the store to make this (I've made before) but they were out of bone in chicken thighs so I bought bone in split breasts. How do I need to adjust the cook time to make this with 2 bone in split chicken breasts?

Anonymous12/04/18

My boyfriend cooks, that is his hobby. I picked up some tricks from him and I surprised him one evening with this recipe. He loved it. Sauce was amazing (I only used 1 tbsp sriracha, not 2), carrots were nice and caramelized. I'm saving this to make it again.

AnonymousOxford, UK10/04/18

Very easy and fantastic. For those that criticize BA for the instructions the print button is in plain sight, the 2nd half of the oil goes in the sauce - read the recipe before you make a stink.

hneafie6256Kenmore, WA06/24/18

This recipe blew my dinner party guests away. I used sambal and added fresh lime juice to the sauce. I thickened it quite a bit with brown sugar instead of honey. It makes the pan sauce a little more like a BBQ which helps a lot. I definitely added more ginger and garlic to kick it up a notch too. Super tasty. I've made it several times since, and I always seem to take much longer to sear the skins and roast everything... I would plan on extra time from now on.

Tyler KnochelLafayette, IN06/19/18

I thought it was delicious. Loved the video's augmented the directions. I finally made nicely browned chicken. It's messy, but so is life. Thanks for dinner.

TomcbrideAlabama06/03/18

I don't want to say I'd never make this again because it was a bad recipe. But I probably won't make this again just because the flavors were a little too spicy for our family. If I did make it again, I might use half the sriracha (or even none). The chicken thighs and carrots turned out amazing, though--even though I forgot to get skin-on thighs. So even with boneless, skinless the actual substance of the meal was delicious. I didn't have problems with the thickness or amount of the sauce like others seem to have. I served it over rice, and there was enough sauce for the rice, too. If you have wimpy tastebuds like we do, maybe chill out on the sriracha. :)

Atlanta, GA03/04/18

Wow this was good! I added a little extra honey since some people said the sauce was thin. It caramelized nicely but maybe a bit much as there wasn't really any sauce to spoon over the chicken. I'll definitely double the sauce next time. I also didn't have Sriracha so I used Sambal Oelek instead (I actually prefer that anyway) and I'll probably do that again next time. Excellent recipe!

PugLuVR06Roseville, CA02/21/18

This recipe was amazingly delicious! I will definitely be making it again. My only substitution was that I used Christopher Ranch chopped ginger in place of fresh. I am not sure if the directions have been updated since some of the previous reviews, but I found that all of the information was included in each step regarding quantities and temperature.

AnonymousSan Jose, California02/14/18

Looking at this recipe I was really excited to try it despite some of the more negative reviews. Sadly, I agree with some of the other commenters. The directions are spotty. I had to do a couple double takes with what heat level to use -- it never says to start searing on low just to increase the heat to medium ... which is actually pretty high for a cast iron pan. Maybe I'm not yet a kitchen master, but it seems like 12 minutes is a long time for a sear when you're ultimately going to transfer to the oven. I also am not quite sure why you have to sear the carrots separately. Aside from all this, the marinade did not pack the punch I was hoping for. Probably would have been better with some garlic and miso, but that's my two cents.

01/09/18

This recipe was just okay. I thought the sauce would produce more of a glazed effect (like Sesame Chicken) but mostly it just flavored the carrots a bit in the bottom of the pan and didn't stick to the chicken very much at all. I'm also not sure if the sauce should have 2 tablespoons of unseasoned rice vinegar (as listed in the Ingredients) or 1 tablespoon of vinegar (as specified in step 8). There is no other step in the recipe that calls for the vinegar, so if you only use 1 T in the sauce, not sure why the ingredients call for 2 T. I used 2 tablespoons when I made the sauce and maybe that's part of the reason I thought this was kind of lackluster. If I make it again, I'll probably add microplaned garlic to the sauce to try and church it up a bit.

AnonymousWashington, DC01/04/18

Love this recipe!! One tip though - The chicken skin will get really crispy in the pan, and then once you put the sauce over top, you'll think you ruined the crispy skin, but just put it on the hottest rack in your oven (mine is the top), and it should crisp back up. I was nervous that the skin sucked up all that sauce and was going to be soggy, but after about 10 min in the oven it crisped back up. Would definitely make this again!!!

Anonymous12/12/17

Meh. All the flavour is in the sauce, which I would rate as just o.k., and there wasn't enough sauce for both the chicken and the carrots.

AnonymousToronto12/08/17

This recipe has become a staple in our home. Often requested, often served, often delicious.

AnonymousBrooklyn, NY11/15/17

I don’t know who thought up this disaster, but they should be fired. This is AWFUL! The timing is off, directions are spotty, and seem to be missing some steps. Because it basically became “ fried chicken”, I ended up with a mongo mess. Never again! Bon Appetit should be ashamed to put their name on this travesty.

qcook1Questa, NM11/07/17

Yass the skin was perfectly crispy (don't mess around with anything but skin-on thighs), the carrot-to-chicken cook time ratio is just right, and the sauce is like an upgrade on my favorite Chinese takeout chicken. Oh, and it was SUPER easy for a weeknight dinner. 11/10 would cook again.

blackoutcakeNYC10/31/17

These are a cornerstone of my weeknight rotation for a reason: they're super easy, super impressive, and super delicious. The skin stayed perfectly crispy for me–you just have to be sure to properly render out all the fat on your first sear. Be patient, and you will be rewarded with crispy chicken.

alizaraeNew York 10/31/17

A lot of flavor and a good level of heat. Just... solid.

careypolisBrooklyn10/31/17

10/10 would make again & again, definitely adding this recipe to the weekly meal plan! It was super simple and everything cooked perfectly.

AnonymousCanada10/28/17

This was amazing, exactly as written. I didn't have a problem with the skin not being crispy, and I'm not sure why people can't see the "print' button. The carrots were almost better than the chicken. Definitely going into the weeknight rotation!!

rockalitalopezPortland, OR10/25/17

I made it but put the sauce on the carrots only, and then spooned some over the dish before serving. It was delicious! Regarding previous comments, I simply clicked on the "print" button and the recipe only printed out, easy to read font, one and one-half pages. Cast iron skillet is best. Oh, and do use a splatter screen

annie627annie62710/19/17

Try it with skinless-boneless - might come out a bit spicier than wit hthe skin, but it looks and tastes great! EASY to follow the recipe!

Manhattan10/01/17

The biggest waste of time ever! So many steps for so little flavor. The worst part was the so-called "glaze" that was so thin it just ended up burning in the bottom of the pan. So disappointing...most BA recipes are winners.

BagooSan Leandro,CA09/29/17

Made it. Loved the flavour but the mess on the top of the stove was enough to turn me off. Fat spattering all over the stove top.

AnonymousVancouver, Canada09/27/17

Please make it printable format!

Anonymous09/27/17

I agree, with what I pay BA for recipes, it can put a print option on each one. Besides, if you highlight, copy, et al,, you get about six pages of discourse. Just put the recipe in printable form as you do the first one in each of these eemails.